27 replies to this topic

[Clownwarlord]

OK with some talk or rumors floated out there of mech pack changes and mostly due to skill tree not requiring 3 mechs and future mechs having less than 7 variants.

So, here was what I was questioning for myself:
- What would I be willing to pay for 1 mech with a mech bay per weight class?
- Would I still want big mech packs as well?
- Would I turn it into a la cart ?

Mind you just my thoughts not what PGI is doing but maybe spark talk to help PGI if they are struggling in ideas.

What would I be willing to pay for 1 mech with a mech bay per weight class?
- light I would pay $7.00 USD for a mech and mech bay
- medium would be $9.00 USD
- heavy $12.00 USD
- assault $15.00 USD

The reason why I would pay these numbers is I know heavies and assaults are the two classes being used the most. So for a new player looking to spend only $10.00 USD (which I think is a good lets test this game price) would get them a light or medium. All the while buying a single mech variant of a heavy and assault still isn't a bad price of $12.00 or $15.00 USD. You basically are paying more to pick and choose what you want of the new mech release.

Would I still want big mech packs? HELL YEAH! Because this is if I am willing to spend $50.00 USD or $70.00 USD I know I can get a deal on my mechs. I also know not everyone can afford a mech pack so still having the single variant pricing allows them to grab one that they may like (which maybe later on they can get a mech pack of that chassis). Basically mech packs I would make it so the purchaser gets a bang for their buck.

Would i want a la cart? Well sorta. Maybe when you release or announce in this case a new mech a player can purchase a la cart the variants at a single mech price and the more they buy the better thei pricing might get and then still have the best pricing being a straight up mech pack.

**********

Please keep it clean but leave your thoughts. Also answer the questions I asked myself if you like.

[RestosIII]

Clownwarlord, on 18 January 2017 - 05:44 PM, said:

What would I be willing to pay for 1 mech with a mech bay per weight class?
- light I would pay $7.00 USD for a mech and mech bay
- medium would be $9.00 USD
- heavy $12.00 USD
- assault $15.00 USD

So I'd have to pay $21, $27, $32, or $45 to get 3 mechs like we do now, but without all of the things already in mech packs besides the mechs themselves? No thank you. I like not getting absolutely shafted just because someone wanted to complain about the fact that they get "mechs they don't want."

[Monkey Lover]

So right now i basically buy premium time,couple colors and get mechs for free.

So maybe
2$-3$-4$-5$ IS
3$-4$-5$-6$ Clan

[Bombast]

I'm not sure.

To be honest, when I pay for things in F2P games, it's like tipping street performers - It's not a value thing, it's a sign of appreciation and respect. I didn't give World of Tanks 50 bucks (Yah, yah,.. bite me) or so for a T34 because it was good value - I did it because I had gotten 50 dollars of fun out of the game, and I thought hey, while I'm tipping, that thing looks fun.

And because of that, I haven't bought Jack **** from MWO because I still was working off the initial 120 bucks.

But with all that's going on, I'm actually kind of happy of how things are seeming. Not for sure, of course - Whether I think PGI 'deserves' more money largely depends on how well they execute on this years updates they've promised.

Anyway... honestly, I can't say how much I'd pay for the stuff I'd buy, because a large part of the purchase has nothing to do with the specific item (Though I'm not going to buy stuff just for the hell of it, either).

I guess... 3-10 bucks? Maybe? Hard to tell, honestly.

[Lostdragon]

$5 per mech with a bay would be the sweet spot for me, maybe $8 for a hero. That would be the sweet spot for pricing for me, then it becomes an impulse buy to just grab a new mech and try it out, especially with the rule of 3 going away.

[Van Hoven]

I really appreciated their newish pricing model with 3 for 20 and the 2 upgrade options for 15 each.

Sadly I can easily see pgi raising prices for a single mech with their remodel. Everything above 10$ for a normal mech and 20$ for a hero / cbill boosted variant would lower my overall investment in the game significantly, since I'd have a hard time justifying spending that much for a single mech.

So best scenario for me would be leave packages available as they are now and give the option to pick a single one out of the pack for 10 or a hero/cbill boosted variant for 20.

Most problematic in my eyes are omnimechs. You really need only one of each chassis, for normal mechs its nice to have a missile/energy/ballistic variant if you like the chassis.

[Scout Derek]

$6USD per mech. Keep the Hero to $15USD if the in-game MC price is to be more than $15USD worth of MC, but if it's less, then adjust price accordingly, per say, $10USD for a hero.

[NighthawK1337]

5$ without Mechbays, 7$ with.

I can already live with the pricing that's already in use (ie. 20$ for 3 or about 6.6$ each) if we could buy each them separately and we can buy multiples. But then we can't, so my wallet's been closed since the Clan Heroes announcement.

I understand the monetization required for F2P games so I can't complain about the price of each mech but at least don't make us buy excess variants.

[Brenden]

Per 'mech? Why, it'd depend on the 'mech.

$2-to-6 dollars, maybe $5. $10 is my max but it'd have to be something really special, like the Lancelot or the Hermes/Vulcan

[LordNothing]

well i was willing to buy an ultraviolet and a cinder. i actually like the stand alone hero packs. id love for future mech packs to come with a hero only option. i really want a buy what you want model. for normal mechs i dont think id want to spend more than $15 on a single assault and no more than $8 for a light. the pricing in the op feels about right.

part of the buy what you want model would mean buy in. by purchasing any variant (even the hero) you buy into the mech pack, then subsequent non-hero mechs from that pack come with a discount. somewhere in the neighborhood of 25-50%. on top of that there is a per mech upgrade option to give them a special tag. hero pricing would be similar to the clan heros. upgrade options are available but you save a little bit by buying in with the hero. other rewards, like premium time and cockpit items depend on how far you buy in.

[TLBFestus]

$15 max for an ala carte mech. Mech prices should vary with size simply because if lights were over all a cheaper buy, you might get more of them in the matches.

With package deals, you should feel that for the amount of money you spent, let's say $30-$50, that you get a substantial discount or more bang for your buck.

[Chuck Jager]

I used to race bicycles and even after putting on more than a few lbs and really slowing down here is what I pay:

piece of crap walmart tire not less than $10 -> basic performance tire $35-45 -> kick *** tire $65 and up - at least 1 tire a year

replacement brake pads $10-$25 per pair .5 to 1 pair per year if not riding much

chains POS $8 to $35 + .5 to 1 per year basic riding

These are the most basic essentials for the cheapest parts of a sport that has low margins. $20-$35 is a really low cost for using anybody's labor. Yes you may get a meal at McDs for less than $5, but look at your cost versus the amount of time in their store.

If it is not worth prioritizing your purchases, do not buy it or cut your expenses. If this seems shallow or condescending please beware I am partially disabled and can only work part time while living well below the US poverty line. NOTE I am really worried about not being able to afford the 2-3gs worth of medical supplies I need a month if my bare bones insurance gets cut for political reasons.

Edited by Chuck Jager, 18 January 2017 - 10:54 PM.

[El Bandito]

Gimme a six-eight missile slot Hero Assault mech, and I'll fork over $20.

[NeoCodex]

It really depends what exactly will it be and how much I want it, as there are things that do not have a price limit. When the Fafnir and MKII come it's an instant buy for me no matter how big the pack is (I would go as far to repeat my Warhawk collection purchase), but if it's some random mechs that I don't care about (like the Roughneck) or seem underwhelming, I would need a lot of convincing and the deals would have to be very good to consider it.

[Korbos]

I don't understand why so many people are saying they are willing to pay over $10 for a single mech when at the moment we only pay around $6.

[RestosIII]

I just realized that I never actually answered what I believe I'd pay for it, just that the prices OP listed are insane. Thankfully, I have my answer in gif form.

[1453 R]

I have over a hundred and fifty 'Mechs on my account. If I had to pay an average of eleven dollars for each of them...

Yeahno.

Piranha's current pricing model seems largely reasonable-ish. Buy a pack for fifteen, twenty bucks, get three 'Mechs and a bunch of Nifties. Spend another ten/fifteen and get two more Fancy Variants. Spend another ten/fifteen, get the Hero. Like the 'Mech more than you should, splurge another twenty for the Collector's.

One can quibble the exact dollar points, but the loss of Nifties will also result in a lot less overall sales as the Val-U-Bundle approach is more likely to entice sales. Singleton sales for ten bucks a 'Mech, with bay but no Nifties, would result in me personally backing off of 'Mech purchases more than I already have, which is really a lot.

Any dollar value Piranha would consider reasonable for a single bare 'Mech, I would consider overmuch. They're going to have to consider their pricing and sales schemes carefully. I, personally and for myself, believe the current model is about as close as you're likely to get to a fair and balanced system for both Piranha and the legions of everyone-elses who all want to buy 'Mechs but only in a very certain, specific way.

So tread carefully. You may just get what you ask for here, guys.

[Bud Crue]

Zip.

I've paid enough.

Now, that being said, if they give me back my Quickdraw's pre-rescale structure quirks and the 5K's energy quirks, I might be convinced to start spending again. Do that AND give middling players a reason to play and enjoy CW (a role for those not having a constant better than 1w/l rate) then I will freely spend to obscene levels once again.

[1453 R]

Bud Crue, on 19 January 2017 - 12:30 PM, said:

...
Do that AND give middling players a reason to play and enjoy CW (a role for those not having a constant better than 1w/l rate) then I will freely spend to obscene levels once again.

But...but...but that defeats the entire purpose of Commodity Warfare!

It's supposed to be a brutal, merciless simulation of cold, hard, vicious WAR, where only the strongest and most well-organized of House military units can thrive while enjoying the hardcore mil-sim roleplaying they love, and where singletons, mercenaries, and most disgusting of all...CASUALS...would never dare to tread until and unless they're ready to sign on for a proper tour with their House military and serve for the Glory of the Cause!

You can't make CW actually accessible to the playerbase at large, worth the multiple hours it takes to find/play one single CW game, or not a gigantic ongoing total waste of Piranha's time and resources! If you...if you did that...if you did than, then it wouldn't be CW!

[KingCobra]

This for a mech and bay


Maybe $4 dollars for a Hero and bay any more and its just to expensive for virtual items in a free to play game.